There is no doubting the impact Colombian forward Luis Diaz has had on Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool side. The 25-year-old has been nothing short of a sensation since joining the Reds this January. He already has three winners medals in his locker and could make it four if his side can defeat Real Madrid in the Champions League final this weekend.
He has made 13 Premier League appearances, with 7 score involvements (4 goals, 3 assists) for Liverpool this season. Those numbers don’t truly illustrate why he is universally accepted as the signing of the season. Two respected pundits waxed lyrical about the forward recently.
Diaz has added a different dimension to a Liverpool attack that hadn’t changed a lot since success returned to Anfield. He is a completely different animal to both Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah.
His impact is reminiscent of another South American when he first walked through the doors at Anfield, Luis Suarez. It is hard to argue the comparison when you look at the stats for the pair. Suarez, also signed in January, made thirteen appearances in his first season for Liverpool. He had a slightly higher number regarding score involvements with 9 (4 goals, 5 assists).
Footballing legends Thierry Henry and Jamie Carragher discussed Luis Diaz on a recent media call.
THIERRY HENRY ON LUIS DIAZ
“When teams play Liverpool now, they sit really deep. Movement sometimes is not enough. It comes down to 1 on 1. When you have a guy who can eliminate 1 or two players, it does unlock everything. Now Liverpool has another weapon.”
“Now he’s doing it for Liverpool. He can put pressure, he can hold the ball, he can see a pass, and he can score. He just needs to finish better and he will be a complete player.”
“What a catch from Liverpool. They don’t buy the superstar player, they go and find players that fit in their system,”
“[Diaz] has something that every player wants to have in this game. He takes the ball, and he runs. [Diaz] is not scared. He’s skillful. [Diaz] has come in and put Jota on the bench. Incredible. He [Jota] has done nothing wrong.”
JAMIE CARRAGHER ON LUIS DIAZ
“I agree with what Thierry said there. In terms of him bringing a few more goals into his game.”
“He reminds me a little bit of Luis Suarez. When he first came in at Liverpool, you saw the ability, but the finishing wasn’t quite there. He [Suarez] sorta missed chances, wasn’t a great striker of the ball. After 18 months at Liverpool, though, he became a goal-scoring sensation.”
If [Diaz] could improve his finishing, he gets in so many exciting positions, it’d just about be the icing on the cake. I’d say right now he is better outside the box than any of the current [Liverpool strikers]”
“You aren’t always 100% sure when Salah or Mane run with the ball that they’ll keep it. Whereas with [Diaz], whenever he receives possession, I am always pretty confident that he will keep the ball”
You don’t really get many bigger endorsements than that in the world of football. And if Diaz can level up the way these two legends think he can, that Liverpool forward line will be even scarier for their opponents.
I honestly didn’t think that was possible.
Tune in this weekend to see Luis Diaz play in the biggest game in club football in the world as Liverpool takes on Real Madrid in the 2021/22 Champions League final. And stay locked on thesportsbank.net for all the buildup to the 2021/22 season curtain call.
Stuart Kavanagh is a sports journalist from Melbourne, Australia. Along with being the owner of the sports and entertainment website thepyrrhic.com, he is the co-host of the ‘After Extra Time’ podcast. Football mad, he is always down for debate and discussion at @stueyissickofit on Twitter.